Public Statement on the Disgraceful Ultimatum of the Roman Catholic Church in Washington, D.C.

Posted by Dharmacharya Gurudas Sunyatananda on November 12th, 2009 filed in Dharma talks

In what can only be described as disgraceful and lacking all resemblance to compassion, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington (D.C.) issued an unbelievable ultimatum to the District government, that it will discontinue social service programs and refuse to honour its contractual obligations with the District, if the D.C. Council approves the proposed same-gender marriage law next month.

The clash between the Roman Catholic Archdiocese and the District of Columbia is another example of the abuses that are being illegally permitted to continue, in violation of the IRS Tax Code, which states:

"In general, no organization, including a church, may qualify for IRC section 501(c)(3) status if a substantial part of its activities is attempting to influence legislation (commonly known as lobbying)." (See: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf)

Despite the fact that under the bill, headed for a D.C. Council vote next month, religious organisations, like the hatemongering Roman Catholic, Mormon and other fundamentalist sects, would not be required to perform same-gender weddings, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese is using the issue to further their agenda of discrimination and intolerance, which could leave tens of thousands of people who rely on services provided by the Archdiocese for help with homeless issues, food, healthcare and adoption assistance without care.

As a retired Catholic bishop – a former Roman Catholic, who disavowed any association with the hatemongering cult in 2001, and who served as a priest and later archbishop for an inclusive, autocephalic Eastern Catholic jurisdiction, I find the actions of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese to be reprehensible and disgusting. It underscores the reasons that I continue to call for the revocation of the Roman Catholic Church’s 501(c)3 status as a tax-exempt entity, as well as the revocation of other hate-groups, such as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

The deceptive policy of these two so-called churches to "love the sinner, but hate the sin" is representative of the truest form of intrinsic evil — that of a church that lies, in an attempt to cover-up its rejection of and hatred for homosexual, bisexual and transgendered persons.

Catholic Charities, the Roman Catholic Church’s social service organisation, is currently contracted to provide services to 68,000 people in the District, including one-third of the homeless people, who stay in shelters managed by the Roman Catholic Church, but owned by the District of Columbia. While the Archdiocese is not the dominant provider of any social services, the impact of this threat of extortion would mean a loss of more than $10 million currently provided by the hate-group for services within the District.

According to the Washington Times, the church’s influence seems limited. In a recent report, the Times states that in separate interviews Wednesday, council member Mary M. Cheh (D-Ward 3) referred to the church as "somewhat childish." Another council member, David A. Catania (I-At Large), said he would rather end the city’s relationship with the church than give in to its demands.

"They don’t represent, in my mind, an indispensable component of our social services infrastructure," said Catania, the sponsor of the same-sex marriage bill and the chairman of the Health Committee.

If necessary, I would leave the hermitage and personally come to Washington, D.C. to help manage and direct a homeless shelter myself — something I’ve done in years past — if it meant continuing to provide a level of care and service to the poor and marginalised, especially during the bitter cold months of the D.C. winters.

Peter Rosenstein of the Campaign for All D.C. Families decried the attempt to blackmail the District, saying: "The issue here is they are using public funds, and to allow people to discriminate with public money is unacceptable."

Council member and chair of the D.C. judiciary committee, Phil Mendelson, points out that there were many people in the 50s and 60s Civil Rights Struggle, who claimed that racial segregation was "ordained by their God". The present intolerance is just another example of how the fundamentalist hatemongerers distort and corrupt the message of compassion, service and unity that Rabbi Jesus is actually believed to have taught. Mendelson added that the Council "will not legislate based on threats."

From 2006 through 2008, Catholic Charities received about $8.2 million in city contracts. I would propose that the District consider this ultimatum in the future, and never again offer the hate-group any contracts or funding whatsoever.

I further call on the Internal Revenue Service to revoke the tax-exempt status of the Roman Catholic Church, based on its clear and patent violation of the Tax Code.

This demand has nothing to do with the tenets of the church itself but only in the context of contributing funds, providing a de facto bully-pulpit, and motivating satellite churches across state lines to influence key political processes and outcomes.

It’s time for the separation of Church and State to be enforced, and the reign of terror imposed by such hate groups as the Roman Catholic Church and Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints be ended — permanently.

– dharmacharya gurudas sunyatananda
(Archbishop Francis-Maria Gianmichael Salvato, M.Sc., Th.D., Ret.)
Wisdom of the Desert Hermitage
46 North Prince Street, Second Floor (Rear)
Suite 1
Lancaster, PA 17603 USA